Sunday, Mar 31st, Busan, South Korea

Greetings!

Busan is the only area to escape the ravages of the Korean War.  Escape is the right word for it, as the city became the home of refugees both domestic and international.  The U.S. retreat ended here, just about the last place it could end - as it fronts on the southern beaches of the country.  United Nations forces fought back from here, and the locals provided a safe shelter for us.

The current city is the most international in the country, and the second largest.  And you can see it in the Jagalchi Fish Market.  Everything found in the sea is here, and everyone with an interest in good food is here to buy it.  And you needed not go too far to enjoy it, as the market's third floor contains food servers who will cook and prepare what you buy at first floor stalls.

After another cornucopia of seafood choices for lunch, our travels took us to the Gamcheon Cultural Village. an urban regeneration project employing unemployed artists to create a hillside of color and imagination.

During the Korean War, allied soldiers died throughout battlefields all over Korea.  Generally, temporary graveyards were developed and maintained where possible nearby.  When access and logistics made it possible, the remains were repatriated out of the country, or moved to more secure locations.

Gradually, the bodies moved south.  And the last location to hold un-repatriated remains was a site in Busan.

In 1951, work began on the UN Memorial Cemetery at Tanggok, Busan.  Between 1950 and 1954, 11,000 casualties were interred there before being transferred to their final destination.  Currently, the Cemetery holds 2,300 servicemembers in 22 sites designated by the nationalities of those buried there.  A sculpture park and twenty-nine memorials have been added.  A wall containing the names of all of the 40,681 allied servicemembers has been placed on the site.  Some of us found what we believe to be the names of relatives on it.

Our hotel (Haeundae Grand Hotel) looks out on the stretch of the East China Sea in the direction of Japan in the great distance, and Jeju Island in the nearer distance (we're flying there tomorrow).  Jeju is a sister city to our hometown, Santa Rosa, and we're looking forward our stay there.

To see all of the photos taken today, click on: Sunday, Mar 31st, Busan, South Korea.

Saturday, Mar 30th, Seoul, South Korea

Greetings!

We began the day visiting a Confusion shrine of the Joseon Dynasty (1392-1897),  Jongmyo.  The longest building in Korea of traditional design, it was founded by the first King (Taejo) whose family dominated the early years.  The Dynasty eventually included 27 Kings, 19 of which are enshrined here.

In May of each year, ritual ceremonies are held contiuing a tradition begun in the 14th century.  Both the shrine and the ceremony are on the World Heritage List.

Skipping ahead 300 years, and only a few blocks, we took a quiet walk through a hillside neighborhood (Bukchon Hanok Village) which has also been designated a historic district, and which enforces strict quiet among the visiting tourists.  Signs and patrols enforce the silence, and 600,000 visitors arrive annually to see the homes of government bureaucrats who served the Joseon Dynasty.

To see all of the photos taken today, click on: Saturday, Mar 30th, Seoul, South Korea

Friday, March 29th, Seoul, South Korea

Greetings!

I learned much in the last three days that I should have known before now.  I don't know how it happened, but I have grown to believe that all I needed to know about Korea was that my father's generation got sent to somewhere cold and frustrating for too long, and that a significant number of them died or were wounded.  While they make up most of the VFW groups, I have never thought to learn much about the circumstances of their service.  I don't think many Vietnam veterans ever learned about how much they have in common with Korean veterans.

In both Korea and Vietnam, in the aftermath of a foreign colonial power's leaving, America stepped in to impose its political system and influence to a weak and confused people.  In both cases, it gave  up on local development and fell back on depending on our military to solve the problem.  In the long run, it was a giant waste of time and people.

I am shocked at how little I know until recently about the power of the Japanese empire from the end of the 19th century until World War II.  And how important that would have been to better understand the social and political dynamics of this part of the world.  My government and school history lessons taught me to fear China.  In particular, the Chinese rebels who forced the deposed government we backed to flee to a tiny island and brutally mistreat its people as it ended Japanese rule.  The rebels who spent most of their time and energy while I was fearing them struggling to help its people recover from the 35-year occupation by Japan. The Japan who had defeated the expansionist efforts of both China and Russia, and had established itself as the dominant power in Asia.  The Japan whose obvious next step was to attack us.

Why I didn't question the premise that people in Asia freed from such tyranny and brutality for so long would choose to follow a foreign power advocating separation and military aggression?  Because I didn't know any of the history over here.  Because I was a lot more ignorant than I thought I was.  But learning new perspectives is one of the benefits of travel.  Nothing's always purely right, but benefits from new viewpoints.

To see all of the photos taken today, click on: Friday, Mar 29th, Seoul, South Korea.

Thursday, Mar 28th, Seoul, South Korea

Greetings!

The Old Kingdom's Palace for the changing of the guard, the National Folk Museum to learn about the everyday lives of the 19th century Koreans, Insa-Dong Street for lunch and shopping, National War Memorial to discover much about the Korean War, and dinner in the Seoul Tower - highest restaurant in the country.

An exhausting day that has us prepared for our visit to the DMZ tomorrow.  For those of you who want a detailed look at the Korean War, from the spring of 1950,check out this video documentary. 

To see all of the photos taken today, click on: Thursday, Mar 28th, Seoul, South Korea.

Wednesday, Mar 27th, Seoul, South Korea

Greetings!

There is a routine that we've gotten down pretty well now for arriving at a hotel, especially if it's from an airport after a long flight, but following an afternoon of touring.  Sometimes we have to drag our luggage from the bus to the hotel lobby, but usually it means that either the hotel is in an area too expensive to house staff, or the hotel can't be reached directly by the bus.  But usually they are there with their very enthusiastic personalities.  Once in the lobby with our bags, we're given room keys, and told when to meet in the lobby to head for dinner.

In the time we have before dinner, the task is to find, examine, and equip the room.  Finding it is easiest, though we're often side-tracked by the elaborate layouts and decorations we find on the way.  More and more hotels are displaying the arts of their cultures throughout the building.

But there is no standard for the layouts of the accommodations around the world.  Especially where they put the electrical outlets, much less what kind they use.  Because we're now in need of re-charging the various mobile and computer devices we've been using all day, we need to be very strategic in plugging them into the wall outlets.

We also need to lay out the bathroom gear, get a sense of what the hotel has provided in the room, and change and freshen up.  Sometimes, we also get to turn on the television (after figuring out how to do so), see what happened in the world, and how this culture watches its television.

Today, we flew from Taipei, Taiwan to Seoul, South Korea.  Two brand new airports, built to handle millions of new passengers, with state of the art equipment.  If you ever want to experience what air travel is capable of being, try one of these destinations.  And when you get to Seoul's International Airport, try one of the information kiosks set up for the most recent Olympics.

There are only a few more photos taken this evening as we walked the streets of Seoul to dinner.  You can see them at: Wednesday, Mar 27th, Seoul, South Korea.
 

Tuesday, Mar 26th, Taipei, Taiwan

Greetings!

While our luggage took the bus today, we boarded the bullet train and sped from Tainan to Taipei.  Tomorrow, we fly to Seoul, South Korea.  But before we leave, there are a few more stops that we'll have time to see.  The first is the Grand Hotel.

If you guessed that the hotel is the brainchild of Chiang Kai-Shek, you'd be right.  His intention was to have a decent place in the mid-1950's for invited high-profile foreigners to stay when they came to the country.

After lunch in its Golden Dragon restaurant, we drove to the Taipei Martyrs Shrine, dedicated to the 390,000 soldiers who died in the War  of Resistance against Japan and the civil war between the Republic of China and the People's Republic of China.

We checked back into the Folio Daan in Taipei for our last night in Taiwan, and then went back out to take a walk in the Taipei's old-town area (Dihua Street).  Our guide, Sam, directed us to the Taiyuan Asian Puppet Theater Museum.

And finally, our Taiwan adventure ended with a custom hunger game tour in the Taipei Night Market by Tour me Away.   Twelve local dishes you've never tasted anywhere else (Hint - No one on our tour was able to finish all of them).

To see all of the photos we took today, click on: Tuesday, Mar 26th, Taipei, Taiwan.

Monday, Mar 25th, Tainan, Taiwan

Greetings!

Today was a temple day.  We also visited two Dutch forts, and old gate,  a large department store, a park with 130 standing inscription stones (stele), and we walked through quite a lot of Tainan's more artistic neighborhoods.  But what we saw and learned most about were temples.

Taiwan temples focus on Buddha, Dao, Confucious, and Matsu.  And sometimes more than one in a temple.  Like the people who worship in each, beliefs tend to be mixed in together, with ancestral worship anchoring all of it.

We weren't alone.  While we tried to find a pattern in the national origin, socio-economic class, age, or language of those around us, we struck out.  We felt welcome everywhere, and our guides helped us understand what we were seeing and hearing.

We first visited the Guan Gong Temple, an all-purpose temple which started out in 1665 as the base of operations for the recapture of China by followers of the Ming Dynasty.  Now, it serves to inspire literature, architecture, educational testing, and even finding a life partner.

Next, we went to the Dutch Fort of Zeelandia (Anping Old Fort), built in 1624 as a strategic trading position in the far east.  Building a fort where there was no clay for bricks, or wood in abundance, is not easy.  The solution: sticky rice, sugar, and crushed clam shells.  No kidding, the walls still exist.

The Dutch decided they needed a fort further inland, and in 1653 they built Fort Provincia two miles east of Zeelandia.  Both forts were supplied by the first Dutch outpost in the east, Batavia (now Jakarta, Indonesia).  Their occupation of the area lasted for 38 years.  In 1662, the forts were taken by a southern Chinese leader (Kozinga) who had fled China when the Ching dynasty defeated the Ming, and intended to use it as a base of support to retake China (sound familiar).

The final temples on our daily tour were dedicated to Masu and Confucius.  The former is loved by every Taiwanese, and arose out of fisherman family folklore.  The latter better known for housing the key tablets ascribed to Confucius and his distinguished disciples.

As if our day wasn't full by then, we walked back to the hotel via the brand new Tainan City Art Museum.  We were just in time for a special party honoring the retirement of the Chair of the Board of Trustees, and wandered around in the exhibit halls as they put the final touches on the art.

To see all of the photos taken today, click on: Monday, Mar 25th, Tainan, Taiwan. 

Sunday, Mar 24th, Tainan, Taiwan

Greetings!

Early this morning, we did get a glimpse of Sun Moon Lake out our front window.  But by the time we got down to the breakfast buffet (one of the largest variety and best quality we've had), the clouds, mist, and rain made the sail on the Lake out of the question.

Our driver arrived with the bus, and we began the long drive to Tainan.  We had a plan to include a hike and ride a train around noon, but the bad weather prevented that.  After a heroic try navigating through a very crowded train station, we grabbed what we could from a seven-eleven for lunch and continued on to Tainan.

Most of us either read or slept on the ride when we weren't wiping condensation off the windows so we could see something of the countryside.

So the highlight of the day was probably the Chinese language lesson Serra gave us.  I plan to tell her that I was able to read some of the signs along the road later in the day, and when we walked to dinner this evening.

To see the very few photos  we took today, click on Sunday, Mar 24th, Tainan, Taiwan.

 

Saturday, Mar 23rd, Sun Moon Lake, Taiwan

Greetings!

In the middle of Taiwan, across a 10,000 foot winding road pass, lies a lake that resembles a sun on one side and a moon on the other.  At least that's what we've been told.  The mountain road all the way up here was socked in with such thick mist that we (and our driver) could hardly see the road ahead.  Arriving at another unbelievable hotel (The Lalu - with the longest infinity pool in the country), we had to cancel a boat ride on the Lake due to the lack of visibility.

This wasn't the case half-way here, when we visited the Chung Tai Chan Monastery.  Built in 2001, it is the international headquarters for the dissemination of the teachings of Grand Master Wei Chueh's effort to spread Chinese Zen Buddhism.  Standing sixteen stories below its golden dome, it is the tallest Buddhist Monastery in the world.  It contains a nine-story pagoda inside.  Photos were not encouraged on many floors, and talking was also prohibited.  Nevertheless, I took some liberties, and our site guide gave us a crash course in the million member group's beliefs and practices.

The last temple we visited today was the Wenwu Temple, located on the edge of the Lake.  The temple is the only Confucius Temple in the country to keep its doors open continually, and that has a seated statue of Confucius inside.  It's also got a perfect view of the Lake (on a clear day).  This one came from the town's website.

To see the photos we took today, click on: Saturday, Mar 23rd, Sun Moon Lake, Taiwan.

Friday, Mar 22nd, Taroko, Taiwan

Greetings!

We left Taipei this morning on Day Three of seven touring beyond the capital city.  We drove south along the eastern coast about a third of the way down the island.  The drive reminded us of Big Sur in California, with narrower roads and higher cliffs.  Looking out onto the Pacific Ocean, I kept an eye out for surf spots with little success.

It was a long drive to the Taroko Gorge, which is where we're staying tonight.  We stopped for lunch at the Eternal Spring Shrine, built to honor the twenty-five men who died in the effort to construct the roads, tunnels, and bridges we were using today.  This part of Taiwan is becoming popular with cyclists, and they had better hurry up and finish the construction of the alternate superhighway being built.

Along the road, our local guide (Sam) convinced us to walk sections of the Gorge to get a better view of it.  We wore blue hardhats to protect us from falling rocks, and tried to keep from getting hit by passing busses.  I probably took too many of these shots, but the rocks and river are pretty dramatic.

We're staying at a 5-star hotel in the Taroko National Park called Silks Place. The rooms are huge, there's an infinity pool for the adults on the roof (and a separate one for the kids), and the food is pretty good too.

To see the photos we took of the Gorge, click on: Friday, Mar 22nd, Taroko, Taiwan.

Thursday, Mar 21st, Taipei, Taiwan

Greetings!

Today was museum day in Taipei.  One of the top five museums in the world has to be the National Palace Museum.  Why?  What if you could go back in time to 1947, and use an army to steal all of China's artistic treasures from the Forbidden City, and take them to Taiwan?

Chiang Kai-shek did.  And some say it was his major accomplishment.  Seven hundred thousand pieces of ancient Chinese artifacts from the Neolithic age to the modern are housed in the museum.  They are well-presented, and the museum is easy to navigate.  Only a small portion of the museum's cache is ever on display, and it is rotated every three months.  The rest of the treasure is stored in the mountain sitting behind the museum.

What we saw, and what you will see photos of in the album, are the jade, porcelain, clay,  and bronze items collected by the many emperors of the Chinese historic dynasties.  The highest quality examples of food containers, wine and water vessels, lamps, kitchenware, weapons, jewelry, and items used in ritual ceremonies.

China claims to have the longest continual civilization on earth, and the museum makes a good case for the persistent demonstration of artistic talent.  We joined thousands today in viewing a small glimpse into what it produced.

The story of the indigenous people of Taiwan, on the other hand, is told at another museum.  The Shung Ye Museum of Formosa Aborigines is a privately funded much smaller archive two hundred meters away we visited next.  It contains a collection of nineteen Austronesian language tribes who lived n the eastern and southern part of Taiwan for almost 5,500 years.

After lunch, we visited the Chiang Kai-shek Memorial Hall, and saw the changing of the guard at Chiang's statue. Framing Liberty Square, the building houses the archives of the very controversial leader of Taiwan from 1949 until 1975.

Finally, as usual, we had to scale 101 Taipei, the now ninth highest building in the world.  A hazy day, we were impressed only by the speed of the elevator, reputedly the fastest still in the world.

To see all of the many photographs taken today, click on: Thursday, Mar 21st, Taipei, Taiwan. 

Wednesday, Mar 20th, Taipei, Taiwan

Greetings!

Fifty-five hundred miles from Auckland, New Zealand is Taipei, Taiwan.  For the next seven days, we're going to share with you what we find here.  This is a tour with Adventures Abroad, our favorite tour company.

When we join a tour, we usually arrive a day earlier than the tour starts, and make our way to the hotel that the company has reserved for us.  Flying takes up a day, especially with the time zone issues.  In this case, we also had a many-legged train and street-walking adventure to get to our hotel.

After a good night's sleep, we decided to get back on the Taipei Metro, and visit three temples: Baoan, Longshan, and Confucius.  We'd  recommend them in that order, and we'll be back at Longshan in a week on the tour.  Back at the hotel, we rested for a few hours before heading off with the group and our tour guide, Serra Hughes, to dinner.  Serra was our guide two years ago when we traveled to Greece, and we were really pleased to learn she would be leading this tour.

To see all of the photos taken today, Click on: Wednesday, Mar 20th, Taipei, Taiwan.

Monday, Mar 18th, Auckland, New Zealand

Greetings!

Yesterday, we went blackwater rafting in a glowworm cave.  New Zealand has a long history of tourists coming to see glowworms.  Long ago, they had to climb down into caves with lanterns (it used to be candles), and were led to the ceiling clusters of milky-way like tiny lights.  The caves, however, are the result of underground rivers which have carved through solid rock.  Some are large enough that boats of tourists can be guided through them. 

But we decided to join The Legendary Blackwater Rafting Company, and a group of ten agile young people, and crawl and float (on inner tubes) through a very narrow stream deep in the caverns.  We're proud to reveal that we survived the experience without harm, even given several backward jumps off cliffs in the dark with a tube around your butt.  Harder still was stepping almost blindly from rock to rock in flowing streamwater in wetsuits without touching the walls or stalactites your helmet is hitting if you don't duck low enough.  It was a great adventure, and the staff made it safe and fun.

Today, we drove from near the caves to Auckland, stopping briefly at the Hamilton Gardens.  This garden is a unique combination of twenty-four garden designs which challenge your imagination and understandings of color and form.  We were surprised at its creativity, and how well it presented the gardens we have encountered around the world.

To see all of the photos we took today, click on: Monday, Mar 18th, Auckland, New Zealand.

Tomorrow, we'll be flying to Taiwan, so don't expect a post for a few days.

Saturday, Mar 16th, Hangatiki, New Zealand

Greetings!

Today, we visited one of the best little museums in New Zealand in New Plymouth.  Puke Ariki's two floors contain more relevant Maori culture, and exhibits far more kid-focused (and kid-smart) than others far larger and popular.  Not only was the information detailed, but it was presented in text, audio, video, and kinescope.  The natural history section was especially complete, with examples of extinct animals I had not seen elsewhere.  The origins of New Zealand and its volcanos presentation ought to be duplicated and sent to all NZ museums.

After another excellent brunch in town, we drove a few miles to the Te Rewa Rewa Bridge.  I stole this photo from Wikipedia because if frames Mount Taranaki.  There is no snow on it currently, but I found the structure to more reflect a breaking wave, and spent plenty of time remembering the feeling of being just inside the curl.  My photos do better justice to that idea.  Pat thinks from a distance it looks like a bird bone carcass.

We're staying at a B&B near the Waitomo Glowworm Caves, and are going blackwater caving tomorrow morning.

To see the rest of the photos taken today, click on: Saturday, Mar 16th, Hangatiki, New Zealand.

Friday, Mar 15th, Mount Taranaki, New Zealand

Greetings!

Still looking for good big surf along the North Island coast, we drove up the officially-designated "Surf Coast" this morning.  We scoped out some breaks on the way up from Whanganui to Opunake.  Two looked possible, as the locals announced, proclaiming "Surf Beach" on makeshift signposts.  Ah yes, if only the swell was larger, and we had more time.  But we did have time for one perfect brunch at the Sugar Juice Cafe in Opunake.  We shared something called "The Dump"  (see ingredients on this photo)

We were headed for Mount Taranacki, and the Mountain Lodge, and a walk on the Patea Trail.  The hike takes you up the eastern slope of a volcano on which the eruptions 400 years ago destroyed an old rimu forest, allowing the ubiquitous kamahi to grow and intertwine around the dead trees.  For a full description of the value of kamaki, read about the work of the Tanes TreeTrust.

Called the "Goblin Forest", it was then over-powered by tropical nikau, titoki, puriri, and pukatea, .  Green everywhere, every size, shape, and hue.

We made it through about three-quarters of the hike, and then walked back down the paved road to the Lodge.  We know our limit, and the forest had us beat this time. 

To see the rest of the photos taken today, click on: Friday, Mar 15th, Mount Taranacki, New Zealand.